Photographic film-developing apparatus



A. R. TURNER.

PHOIOGRAPHIC FILM DEVELOPING APPARATUS. APPLICATION FILED SEPT. 21, 1919.

1,432,269. Patented Oct 17,1922.

Patented Oct. 17, 1922.

UNITED s'rAi as ALBERT RICHARD TURNER, 0F BRIGHTON, ENGLAND.

PHOTOGRAPHIC FILM-DEVELOPING APPARATUS.

Application filed September 27, 1919.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, ALBERT Rio 'unn TURNER, a subject of the King of Great Britain and Ireland, and a resident of Brighton, England, have invented a certain new and useful Improvement in Photographic Film-Developing Apparatus, of which the following is a specification.

This invention has reference to photographic film developing apparatus for day light and other working and consists in an improved construction and arrangement introducing a novel mode of unwinding the film off the. spool inside the developing tank, viz :-b rotation of the lid on the tank. Other eatures of the invention will be apparent from the following description.

A practical embodiment of the said invention is illustrated by the accompanying sheet of drawings, wherein Figure 1 is a top plan view of the tank with the lid removed.

Figure 2 is a vertical sectional view of the tank showing the lid in position.

Figure 3 is a view of one form of clampmeans hereinafter described.

Figure 4 is a detail view of a film spool carrier.

The developin tank proper b is furnished with means for olding one end of the film. which is unwound by rotation of the lid of the tank, this action constituting an essential feature of the invention. That is to say the present invention contemplates the provision of a developing tank having a lid 9 rotatable thereon and carrying eccentrically therewith a film roll engaging device for conveying the film through the solution in the developing tank over a spiral course or path when the lid is rotated on the tank.

In the embodiment now being described, the tank 6 is fitted with a removable spiral film guide member 6 which forms a guide way for the film roll. The developed length of the spiral e is slightly longer than the longest film to be dealt with by the apparatus. In practice the inner end 6 of the spiral e is provided with a hook portion 6 having the recess 6 which receives the bent end of the film when the latter is placed in the ideway e. A preferable manner of detachably fitting the spiral in position is by means of a sliding fit of the vertical edge at e inthe slideway f secured to the inner side wall of the tank I).

The lid 9 is furnished with a handle I;

Serial No. 327,002.

is shown in Figure 5. Here is seen a body portion i with inturned fingers t" which are shaped to grip the spool extremities, either by means of pivots i to fit in the bore formed in the end of some spools, or by equivalent means to take over spindle ends projecting from some film spools. The body portion '1'. carries a tubular portion 2' which is adapted to receive the arm ii of the pivoted handle it of the lid member.

When the spool is fitted with such a carrier, the excess paper wrapping of the film is removed and the film end bent back so that it extends into recess 6 when the spool is dropped into the first turn 6 of the spiral film guideway e. A convex fiat or other vertically arranged spring j may be secured to the guideway e to keep the film from unwinding (when the spool is of small diameter and loosely fits the space a") before the lid is in position. The film end is clamped in recess 6 by any convenient means, such. for instance, as that shown in Figure 3. A wedge member is moves up and down in a sliding member 1:, there being a pin and slot and In to hold the two members together. 70 is a serrated or other gripping edge. This device is dropped into the recess 0* with the serrated edge 70 against the film; the clamping is efiected by depressing the wedge is. A bracing bar e may be fitted to preserve the shape of the spiral guideway extremity. After the spool is inserted in such fashion in the developing tank 7), the solution is poured in, and the lid 9 is placed on, with the arm h inserted into the sleeve 2' of the film-spool carrier. Now, by rotating the lid 9 on the tank I), the pivoted handle it unwinds the film by carrylng the spool around the spiral guideway 6 up to the extremity e or such other distance necessary to completely unwind the film,

Separate spool-carriers, one type of which is illustrated in Figure 4 may be supplied to take various sizes and types of spools.

Having now described my invention, What I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent of the United States is:-

1. In a device of the class described, a developing tank, a spiral guide element forming a guide-way in said tank and having a film roll receiving pocket located at the center ot' the tank, means at the inner end of said guide way for holding the free end of the film, a lid for said tank, and means carried by said lid and adapted to engage with the film roll to pull the same through the guide-way when the lid is rotated on the tank.

2. A. photographic film developing apparatus including a circular developing tank, a spiral guide element within. the tank forming a guide-Way having a film roll receiving portion located at the center portion of the tank, means at the inner end of said guideway for holding the free end of the film, a lid for covering said tank, and a crank arm eccentrically pivoted to said lid and having a right angular extension projecting into the tank for engaging With the film roll to pull the same around the guideay to unwind the film when the lid is rotated on the tank.

3. A photographic film developing apparatus including a developing tank, a spiral guide member within the tank forming a film roll guide-Way extending from the center of the tank to the periphery thereof and said guide member being formed at its inner end to loosely receive the film roll and means also at the inner end of said guide-way for holding the relatively free end ot the filin,a cover for the tank, and film roll engaging means carried by the said cover e'ccentrically thereof and: having a portion for engaging with the film roll to therel'iy pull. the same through the guide Way upon the rotation of the cover.

4-. A photographic film developing apparatus includinga tank, a spiral guide ID8111- ber within said tank and having its inner end formed to receive a film roll, means for clamping the free end of the film to the inner end of said guide member, a cover for the tank, and a crank element pivoted eccentrically in the cover and having a portion for engaging with the film roll to thereby connect the same with the cover whereby the rotation of the latter on the tank will pull the said film roll overa spiral path determined by said guide member.

In testimony whereof I have affixed my signature hereto this 22nd day of August LLBERT RICHARD TURNER. 

